Sierra Leone president suspends auditor-general who exposed corruption
On Thursday (11 November), President Julius Maada Bio suspended the country’s auditor-general Lara Taylor-Pearce and ordered the attorney-general to form a tribunal to probe the Audit Service Sierra Leone (ASSL) headed by Taylor-Pearce. The suspension letter said she had been removed for ‘professional performance or the lack thereof’.[1]
Taylor-Pearce has led ASSL for 10 years and is currently the only woman heading a top government agency or parastatal in Sierra Leone. Her last government audit implicated the president’s inner circle. Now, her removal before a new audit report extends recent signs of institutional weakness and taints the 2023 electoral process given the influence of these annual reports on public opinion.
Significance – Strengthening institutions
Every year, ASSL publishes an audit of public finances that often includes evidence of government corruption and consequently draws significant political controversy. For example, Taylor Pearce’s 2019 report describes illicit payments involving the first lady Fatima Bio, the then-chief minister David Francis and the central bank governor Kelfala Kallon. These corruption claims were later reported in international press and dented the public perception of President Bio, who came to power in 2018 accusing his predecessor of corruption and promising public sector reform. That impact antagonised the Bio government, soured its relations with Taylor-Pearce, and it was widely speculated that she would be removed before the next audit report is due, next month (See: Sierra Leone’s auditor-general under pressure for her findings on government corruption).
Taylor-Pearce is respected by civil society and has a reputation for being independent and nonpartisan. She was one of the few key public sector leaders who managed to remain in their position after the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) defeated the All People’s Congress (APC) in the 2018 presidential election. Bio replaced the chief justice, the central bank governor, the head of the Anti-Corruption Commission and the heads of many other top government agencies within his first year.
Taylor-Pearce’s status as the only woman leading a top government institution also exemplifies the low level of women’s representation in the public sector. Only 18 out of 148 members of parliament are women, and Bio’s cabinet of 32 officials includes only four women – who manage the gender, tourism, marine and social welfare portfolios. However, last month the president sent to parliament a bill that would reserve 30% of elective and public offices for women.
Outlook – 2023 elections buildup
Constitutional amendments will likely be required to support the proposed legislation for affirmative action. But changes are unlikely to be enacted in time before 2023 elections if the legislative process does not progress in the next six months (See: Sierra Leone Revives Gender Bill to Reserve 30% of Positions for Women).
Meanwhile, Taylor-Pearce’s removal further dims the likelihood of public sector reform and the strengthening of institutions in the medium term. It also taints the electoral process given the circumstances – by interfering with the impending release of an audit report that could shape public opinion as the president prepares to mount a re-election campaign next year. On tainting the electoral process, we noted in April the government’s contentious bid to organise a census that precedent suggests would give the ruling SLPP an electoral advantage in 2023 (See: Sierra Leone's parliamentary fault lines).
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[1] Sierra Leone’s auditor-general is fired (November 2021). BBC.
Image: Freetown, Bunting Kargbo
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